


Breaking the Bonds of Trust

by merentha13



Category: The Professionals
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-25
Updated: 2014-01-25
Packaged: 2018-01-10 00:05:57
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 699
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1152430
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/merentha13/pseuds/merentha13
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Post "Operation Susie"</p>
            </blockquote>





	Breaking the Bonds of Trust

**Author's Note:**

> Response to Tea & Swissroll Weekly Obbo:
> 
> Prompt: _**I’m not upset that you lied to me, I’m upset that from now on I can’t believe you.**_ \- Friedrich Nietzsche

Neither man flinched as the office door slammed on Doyle’s retreating heels.

“Bit dramatic, but not unexpected from your partner.” Cowley removed his glasses, rubbing his eyes.

“Damn it!” Bodie slammed his fist down hard on the top of Cowley’s desk. “More than Diana Molnar’s life was lost in that train yard -- Sir.”

“Aye, Bodie. A bad day all round. But Doyle has to understand-”

“Understand?" Bodie rolled his eyes. "Doyle needs to believe in what he’s doing. That it all means something.”

“And Miss Molnar’s death was meaningless?”

“She didn’t have to die.”

“No. No, she didn’t.” Cowley looked up at Bodie. “And Doyle blames me.” It wasn't a question.

“You were the only one who knew where we would be. If you were Doyle, where would you place the blame?”

“I had my reasons.” Cowley put his glasses back on, his hands moving dismissively to the stack of folders on his desk. “Which I don’t intend to share with you or Doyle.”

Bodie let out a long breath. “Doyle – he trusted you.” 

Cowley opened his mouth to speak but Bodie waved him off.

“Oh, he’s not naive. He knows that there are things – ugly things – that have to be done – hell, he’s done them. We both have. You know that. But - well, he put his trust in you. Believed that despite whatever you had to do for Queen and country, you’d always have our backs – he trusted that it wouldn’t be _you_ that set us up.” Bodie’s gaze moved away from the sharp blue eyed gaze to a spot over Cowley’s right shoulder. “ – trusted you not to betray us.”

“Your partner is going to have to grow up, Bodie. There’s little room for idealism-”

Meeting Cowley’s gaze again with narrowed eyes, Bodie interrupted. “Doyle believes in CI5, its brief and the man who embodies it; the man who shares the same uncompromising sense of justice that drives him. Is it idealistic to put your faith in that man? Is it a fool’s game to trust?” Receiving no answer, Bodie stood up and walked to the closed office door. He sighed in resignation. “I suppose he'll get over it.”

“No, he won’t. But he'll learn to come to terms with it. It’s his weakness and his strength. He cares.”

“Pretty stupid in our business, eh?”

 

Thinking he had a long night of trying to find where Doyle had gone to drown his anger, Bodie was surprised to find his partner leaning against the silver Capri in the CI5 car park. 

“’m sorry,” Ray mumbled, staring at his trainers as Bodie approached.

“Dozy prat.” Bodie looked around the parking garage. Finding themselves alone he put a hand on Ray’s shoulder and dragged him into a loose hug. “What’re you sorry for?”

“Lost me temper up there.” He waved a hand towards Cowley’s office window.

Body laughed softly. “That’s new?”

“Suppose not.” Ray shrugged.

“Hey.” Bodie's finger gently raised Ray’s down turned head. Talk to me, Ray. What’s wrong?”

"Cowley--he makes people trust him." Ray stepped away and ran his fingers roughly through his hair. “This time he had _my_ number.”

Bodie raised his eyebrows waiting for the rest, knowing there was more.

Ray didn’t disappoint. He closed his eyes and shook his head. “Not again, Bodie.” His eyes opened and Bodie noted the darkness there. “Won’t happen again.”

Bodie closed his own eyes and nodded, saddened by the defeat in Ray’s voice. Ray was his conscience; Ray kept him from being what he once was, had changed him. Oh, he’d laugh at what he called Ray’s bleeding heart liberalism, his softer side, his – what had Cowley said – his caring too much. And he’d tried to understand and offer comfort when the idealism turned to gloom. But the truth was he needed Ray to care, to bleed a little when it all went wrong. It was Ray that lit the path through the mire that Cowley spread before them – believing things would be better for their efforts. He needed that light of Ray’s; he hated to see it dim. He wondered how much longer, how many more operation Susie’s would it take to put that light out for good.


End file.
